After three inspiring days in Porto, the 11th Airborne Wind Energy Conference (AWEC 2026) has officially come to a close, bringing together 160+ attendees including researchers, industry leaders, policymakers, innovators and students from across the world to discuss the future of airborne wind energy.
Hosted by the University of Porto, and jointly organised by Airborne Wind Europe and Delft University of Technology, this year’s conference once again confirmed AWEC as the leading international forum for the airborne wind energy sector. Over three days, participants explored the latest scientific advances, industrial developments and policy priorities that will shape the next phase of the sector’s growth through plenary sessions, technical presentations, poster sessions, industry panels and networking events.
Building momentum through international collaboration
The week began with the IEA Wind Task 48 Progress Meetings, where a full room of experts reviewed the progress achieved across the Task’s work programme and discussed priorities for the months ahead.
Discussions covered topics ranging from materials, manufacturing and supply chains to modelling tools, regulation, deployment pathways and social acceptance. Participants also presented the latest developments in AWE research, providing an ideal starting point for the conference and highlighting the importance of international collaboration in accelerating innovation.
The networking cocktail that followed provided an opportunity for participants from academia, industry and public institutions to reconnect, exchange ideas and strengthen collaborations ahead of the conference itself.
Turning innovation into reality
The official conference opened with welcoming remarks from Fernando Fontes, Stefanie Thoms and Roland Schmehl, before a series of keynote presentations exploring how airborne wind energy is moving closer to commercial deployment.
Representing the European Commission, Enrico Degiorgis highlighted the European Union’s continued commitment to supporting wind innovation through initiatives such as Horizon Europe and the SET Plan, emphasising the strategic importance of technologies capable of reducing material use while strengthening Europe’s renewable energy sector.
The technical programme continued with inspiring presentations from Moritz Diehl, who demonstrated how airborne wind energy could complement solar power by helping address seasonal and daily generation gaps, and an OEM Panel moderated by Kristian Petrick, where AWE companies including Kitepower, EnerKÃte, Kitemill, Kitenergy, Wind Fisher and UPWIND Energy shared their latest progress towards market adoption.
Later in the day, Gerdien de Vries reminded attendees that technological innovation alone will not determine the success of airborne wind energy. Public engagement, social acceptance and collaboration with local communities will be equally important as the industry prepares for large-scale deployment.
Alongside the plenary programme, participants attended parallel technical sessions covering modelling and simulation, control and optimisation, testing and operations, aerodynamics, system design, wind resources, sensing technologies and novel airborne wind energy concepts. Poster sessions showcased emerging research from institutions around the world, reflecting the breadth and maturity of the field.
From research to market
The conference’s final day focused on one of the sector’s defining challenges: translating technological excellence into real-world deployment.
In his keynote address, Nicolás González Casares, Member of the European Parliament, described airborne wind energy as “one of the most promising innovative renewable energy technologies.” Highlighting its potential for rural areas, islands and remote communities, he stressed that innovation must now move from the laboratory to the market through sustained public investment, supportive funding mechanisms and long-term policy commitment.
The AWETRAIN Panel brought together all doctoral candidates from the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Network, demonstrating how Europe is investing not only in technology but also in the next generation of researchers and engineers who will drive the sector forward.
Further technical sessions explored advances in optimisation, testing, aerodynamics, manufacturing, offshore concepts, control systems and sector development before the conference concluded with the celebration of the Best Poster Award, presented to Gabriel M. Fernandes from the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto (FEUP).
A growing global community
Beyond the presentations, AWEC 2026 once again demonstrated the value of bringing the global airborne wind energy community together.
Researchers, start-ups, established companies, policymakers and students exchanged ideas throughout the conference, creating new collaborations and strengthening existing partnerships. The conversations that took place during coffee breaks, poster sessions, networking events and the conference dinner reflected a sector that is becoming increasingly mature, international and collaborative.
The conference programme itself reflected this momentum, featuring six plenary keynote talks, an OEM industry panel, the AWETRAIN panel, 60+ oral presentations across parallel technical sessions and 20+ scientific posters from contributors around the world.
Looking ahead
Although AWEC 2026 has come to an end, the conversations started in Porto will continue.
The technologies presented, the partnerships strengthened and the ideas exchanged over the past three days will help shape the next stage of airborne wind energy development as the sector moves closer to commercial deployment.
A heartfelt thank you goes to all speakers, authors, sponsors, exhibitors, volunteers, organisers and participants for making AWEC 2026 such a success.
Over the coming weeks, Airborne Wind Europe will continue sharing conference highlights, photographs, presentation recordings and key takeaways from Porto.
See you at the next AWEC.